BOSTON, April 16: Kenyan runners continued their dominance of the Boston Marathon Monday when Rodgers Rop won the men’s race and Margaret Okayo broke the course record in the women’s event.

Rop, a 26-year-old Nairobi policemen, won in two hours nine minutes and two seconds by running the back half of the course, which is considered more difficult because of a series of hills, faster than the first half.

He beat second-placed compatriot Christopher Cheboiboch, 25, by three seconds.

Okayo pulled away from compatriot and world-record holder Catherine Ndereba to win the women’s race, shattering the course record for the 42.195 km race.

Okayo clocked two hours 20 minutes 43 seconds, breaking the course record set by German Uta Pippig in 1994 by about a minute.

Ndereba, who had won the past two Boston Marathons, faded in the final kilometres and finished second in two hours 21 minutes 12 seconds.

The men’s race was a conservative affair through 25 km as about 30 tightly-grouped runners settled on a cautious pace because they anticipated warm weather approaching 38 degrees Celsius.

But that forecast never materialised and Rop took control on a humid, overcast day, stringing out the pack by gradually picking up his pace. At one point, eight Kenyan runners were in the leading pack with the rest of the field lagging.

Kenyan runners have won the men’s division at Boston every year except one since 1991.

At the 35 km mark, only Rop and Cheboiboch remained in contention.

Rop, appearing stronger after climbing a series of four tough hills, ran the last half of the race more than a minute faster than the first half to break the winner’s tape in downtown Boston.

Korea’s Lee Bong-Ju, who won last year’s race, finished fifth, breaking up a group of Kenyans who took six of the top seven spots.

RESULTS: